Knowhutimean? Hey Vern, It's My Family Album

Back in my single days, my roommates and I had every line memorized from the skit where he portrayed every single character in a frontier standoff between the occupants of a fort and the dreaded "Beige foot"

His true gift was mimicry; in that one skit he portrayed every conceivable war movie stereotype; John Wayne, Walter Brennan, a British officer, an Irish soldier, "Cookie" the fort's cook, and an assortment of others. In one of his later movies, Earnest Goes to Jail, he slips into the roll of Sylvester Stallone and then James Mason w/o missing a beat. He just had an amazing gift. The sad part is most people just think of him as the bumbling kid movie star

We'll miss you big guy....

Like all the Ernest movies, this video has some very hilarious parts as well as some inane parts. But does it matter? No. As a Ernest fan, I really watch something with Ernest to see what bone headed move he'll make next. In this video, Jim Varney plays some of his relatives. Some of it is a little annoying, but it's mostly just plain fun.

Although not a great example of cohesive film making, this film is a great example of what can be done when fun is included in the making of a piece of entertainment. This is also a great platform for Jim Varney's great talent for range and voices. He plays almost every character, and it is great fun to watch him go from the bumbling Ernest to Uncle Lloyd, the meanest man in the world, to the dozen or so characters he does as Corporal Davey Worrell. Come on, it's just for fun. If you find it, rent it, and prepare to belly laugh. Jim Varney will be missed. We need more of that silliness in Hollywood today.

This video contains some pretty amazing skits. Some are amazingly funny, and some are so amazingly bad that it just makes you shake your head.

The most alarming of the skits is the Corporal Davy Worrell sketch. This is done so well it's downright scary. It's a magnum opus of schizophrenic behavior so real you have to wonder why he didn't wind up in the rubber room next to Jonathan Winters. The "Meanest Man in the World" segment has pretty decent acting. And the string of non-sequiter utterances during the Pops Worrell skit is one for the ages.

Others, in particular the "Billy Boogie" segment, are absolutely dreadful and embarrasing to watch. Trust me, this is why the "FF" button was invented. Even worse than the "Earnest" movies, if you can imagine such a thing.

The production values are pretty awful, but that doesn't really detract. I actually lived very near most of the locations in central Kentucky, like the repro Fort Boonesboro in the Davy Worrell segment. I ran model boats in the creek in the Pops skit, and I have seen the abandoned bus in which Queequeg lives. Talk about a brush with fame!

I'm a sucker for Ernest and I sat through his movies(quite happily) all day just to write down every character and voice he portrayed. All in all, Jim played and/or voiced 61 distinct characters and that's only the 'Ernest' related ones. I dare any one in Hollywood to find me an actor capable of such true genius without using one sexual remark or one swear word. There's just no way. I'm a big Jim Varney fan but if you're fan or not, you must watch these skits. Jim Varney was one of the best at creating and bringing to life the characters and he transitions from one character to the next so smoothly, it looks effortless. For example: the 'Davy Worrell' skit, he goes from one character and voice to another without missing a beat. My personal favorite 'person' in this 'movie' is "Billy 'Boogie' Worrell". As crazy as Jim can make his face appear, from squishing it up to dressing as 'Auntie Nelda', I must admit, this character was sexy. The deep raspy voice, sunglasses, jewelry, the knit cap, sleeveless shirt and disco music really made this character. I know I'm not the only one who thinks so. Jim Varney had the ability to make himself look absolutely hilarious just by being Ernest and then looking positively good looking. Yeah, as you can tell, I'm a Jim Varney fanatic. These skits show off the true skill that only Jim had. I couldn't stop laughing at 'Great Uncle Lloyd Worrell', especially when he named his son, 'Mistake' and pretended to eat steak and lobster when the plates were empty. 'Pop Worrell' made me laugh so hard, tears were coming out of my eyes. He would just say whatever came into his head regardless if it made any sense or not. Jim was the master of disguise. You can hardly imagine that Billy Boogie, Lloyd and Pop are really all Jim Varney. In real life, however, Jim Varney had a near genius IQ so playing these characters must have been a treat. He was a genius at making me laugh so hard, I hurt. When I pop in one of his DVD's I get a little sad because I know there will be no more. It's still sometimes hard to believe he's gone. RIP, Jim. You will be forever missed. Remember, that you were a wonderful person and a brilliant actor. 1949-2000.